Packaged food product

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a packaged food product ( 1 ) comprising a soluble product ( 1 ), a package ( 2 ) with a cup ( 3 ) having cup inner walls ( 4 ) defining an internal volume of the cup, a cup bottom ( 5 ), a cup opening ( 6 ), characterized in that said cup ( 3 ) further comprises an opercule ( 7 ) that is at least partially detachably sealed to the surface of the inner walls ( 4 ) of the cup ( 3 ) by sealing means, so that a predetermined portion of the internal volume of the cup is closed, said product ( 1 ) being packed in said closed cup portion.

The present invention relates to a cup for beverages, and more particularly to a so-called “opercule cup”.

By “opercule cup” it is meant a container with a closed compartment containing a food product, for example soluble coffee in the form of a powder. More precisely, opercule cups commonly known, typically comprise a cup made out of cardboard material or similar. An insert having the shape of a second cup and containing the food product is usually disposed inside the cup, and attached to the bottom of the latter. The insert can have any shape or size, but its volume usually does not exceed one third of the internal volume of the cup. The insert—which can be made of any type of material but is generally made out of an injection molded thermoplastic material like polystyrene or polyethylene—has an opening which is closed by a removable closure. In the generally known executions of opercule cups, the insert is closed by a peelable removable foil made for instance out of aluminium. For practical reasons, the foil sometimes comprises an extension which defines a tab, said tab being accessible from the top edges of the cup. As is understood, the insert is located at the bottom inner portion of the cup with its opening turned towards the opening of the cup.

Using such opercule cups is fairly simple and very practical, avoiding messiness. They are particularly used in public transport like for example in air transport catering. For using the cup, like for example a cup as above described, the consumer has to peel off the opercule foil, eventually using a pulling tab if one is provided. Once the foil has been disposed of, the contents of the cup insert, eg. soluble coffee is accessible. The consumer then pours a fluid food composition, for instance hot water (but can be anything else like cold milk, soft ice cream, or a fluid dairy product), which is mixed with the contents of the insert. When the mixed food product is ready, for example hot coffee, the cup is used as a normal cup to taste the product.

As can be seen, such opercule cups provide many advantages for preparing instant fluid—liquid—food products, especially when few or no cooking material is available.

However, the opercule cups known so far are expensive to manufacture, due to the insert that is produced separately, then assembled to the main cup, filled, and finally closed. All these different manufacturing operations, as well as the different materials that are used make opercule cups a packaging that is limited to premium or super-premium brand products.

Moreover, inserts are manufactures separately and generally in one—standard—size, which corresponds to a given volume of product to package. However, in case the volume of product has to be changed, for example in case a strong coffee powder is packed instead of the standard coffee product, a given volume of the insert is useless. In such a situation, and in order to optimise the stacking of cups relatively to the volume of product that is packed, one has to produce inserts with different sizes, and make sure that each insert size is adapted to each different type of product to pack. This requires a large stock of different inserts as well as a specific equipment to appropriately chose the right insert size depending on the product to be filled in the cup. Such a manufacturing process is not flexible at all and is therefore expensive.

Therefore, a need exists for an opercule cup that would keep the same advantages as described herein before, especially offering a practical solution for preparing ready-to-drink food beverages when few or no cooking material is provided, while being structured so that the cost of the opercule cup remains as low as possible.

The present invention addresses the need set out above with a packaged food product comprising a soluble product, a package with a cup having cup inner walls defining an internal volume of the cup, a cup bottom, a cup opening, characterized in that said cup further comprises an opercule that is at least partially detachably sealed to the surface of the inner walls of the cup by sealing means, so that a predetermined portion of the internal volume of the cup is closed, said product being packed in said closed cup portion.

With the present invention, it is very easy to chose the precise location of the opercule into the cup, so the the closed volume for packing the product is appropriately linked to the amount of product to be packed. For instance, if the amount of powdered coffee mix packed is 20 g, the opercule will be sealed at a higher location in the cup than if only 2 g of powdered coffee has to be packed. Therefore, no useless headspace is created in the closed portion of the cup, and stackability of the cups is optimised relatively to the cups contents.

In a first embodiment of the invention, the sealing means comprise a thermoplastic layer located at the bottom surface of the opercule and a layer of a sealingly or adhesively compatible thermoplastic material located at the surface of the inner wall of the main cup, both layers being ultrasonically sealed at the interface between said opercule and said walls.

In a second embodiment of the invention, the sealing means comprise a thermoplastic layer located at the bottom surface of the opercule and a layer of a sealingly or adhesively compatible thermoplastic material located at the surface of the inner wall of the main cup, both layers being thermally sealed at the interface between said opercule and said walls.

Preferably, the thermoplastic layers are made out of polyethylene.

In one embodiment of the invention, the said internal walls of the cup define a curved surface in the radial direction.

Advantageously, the said at least partially detachable opercule can be a substantially horizontal aluminium foil, comprising an integral pulling tab that extends from the level of said opercule, up to the top edges of the cup.

In one possible execution of the invention, the packaged product is an instant soluble coffee product.

Additional features and advantages of the present invention are described in, and will be apparent from, the description of the presently preferred embodiments which are set out below with reference to the drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is an schematic profile view of a container assembly according to the invention.

The present invention concerns a packaged food product comprising a soluble product 1 disposed in a package 2.

The package 2 comprises a paper cup 3 having cup inner walls 4 defining an internal volume of the cup, a cup bottom 5, a cup opening 6.

According to the invention, the cup comprises an opercule 7 that is detachably sealed to the surface of the inner walls 4 of the cup 3 by sealing means, as illustrated in FIG. 1. The opercule is sealed approximately at one third of the height of the cup internal volume as shown in the drawing, and the coffee powder 1 is packed in the so-defined closed cup portion.

The sealing means comprise a thermoplastic layer—not shown in the drawing—located at the bottom surface of the opercule and a layer of a sealingly or adhesively compatible thermoplastic material, typically a polyethylene, located at the surface of the inner wall of the main cup, both layers being ultrasonically sealed at the interface 8 between said opercule 7 and said walls 4.

As can be seen in the FIG. 1, the said internal walls 4 of the cup define a curved surface in the radial direction.

The detachable opercule 7 is a substantially horizontal aluminium foil, comprising an integral pulling tab 9 that extends from the level of said opercule 7, up to the top edges 10 of the cup 3.

In the present example of the invention, the packaged product 1 is an instant soluble coffee product.

The opercule 7 is applied to the inner walls 4 of the cup 3 by using a punching mechanism—not shown—which deforms a flat foil into a cup-shaped membrane, the punching tool being conical in shape so as to conform to the contours of the inner walls 4 of the cup, so that said punching tool can apply a sealing pressure onto the opercule to enable the sealing between said opercule and the surface of the inner walls 4, precisely at the interface 8.

It should be understood that various changes and modifications to the presently preferred embodiments described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention and without diminishing its attendant advantages. It is therefore intended that such changes and modifications be covered by the appended claims. 

1. A packaged food product comprising a soluble product, a package having a cup comprising cup inner walls defining an internal volume of the cup, a cup bottom, a cup opening, and an opercule that is at least partially detachably sealed to the surface of the inner walls of the cup by sealing means, so that a predetermined portion of the internal volume of the cup is closed, the product being packed in the closed cup portion.
 2. A packaged food product according to claim 1, wherein the sealing means comprise a thermoplastic layer located at a bottom surface of the opercule and a layer located at the surface of the inner wall of the main cup, both layers being ultrasonically sealed at an interface between the opercule and the wall.
 3. A packaged food product according to claim 1, wherein the sealing means comprise a thermoplastic layer located at a bottom surface of the opercule and a layer located at the surface of the inner wall of the main cup, both layers being thermally sealed at an interface between the opercule and the wall.
 4. A packaged food product according to claim 2, wherein at least one of the thermoplastic layers comprise polyethylene.
 5. A packaged food product according to claim 1, wherein the internal walls of the cup define a curved surface in a radial direction.
 6. A packaged food product according to claim 1, wherein the at least partially detachable opercule is a substantially horizontal aluminium foil, comprising an integral pulling tab that extends from the level of the opercule, up to the top edges of the cup.
 7. A packaged food product according to claim 1, wherein the product is an instant soluble coffee product.
 8. A packaged soluble food product, comprising a package having a cup comprising cup inner walls defining an interior of the cup, a cup bottom, a cup opening, and a compartment located at a bottom portion of the interior of the cup and defined by a layer that is at least partially detachably sealed to a surface of the inner walls of the cup so that a predetermined portion of the interior of the cup is closed, the soluble food product being located in the interior of the cup that is closed.
 9. A packaged food product according to claim 3, wherein the thermoplastic layers are made out of polyethylene.
 10. A packaged soluble food product according to claim 8, wherein the soluble food product is a coffee product. 